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Thailands Travellers TalesTell us your stories about your Thailand vacation. Where did you travel in Thailand? Is Pattaya more fun than Bangkok? Did you visit Phuket or any of the other Thai Islands? Did you go on a tour to visit the Hill Tribes in Northern Thailand? Share your Thailand pictures and Thailand video stuff on this forum and tell us about your holiday.

After years of doing nothing much in Bangkok, I've recently done a few flights in a short space of time.

Oman Air - a good level of service, new planes and ok prices (can be expensive at times). Bkk to Muscat; Muscat to Colombo; Kathmandu to Muscat. All 8/10.Ethiad - the worst food I've ever tasted on a plane, but new planes and efficient. I wouldn't go out of my way to fly them, but their prices are sometimes good. Muscat to Abu Dhabi; Abu Dhabi to London, and back again (6 hour delay at Heathrow...). 7/10Cathy Pacific - ok service (Oman Air were better), new plane, decent price. Colombo to Bangkok (it was a red-eye flight, and the staff seemed more interested in sleeping than doing their job; very empty plane; 777 with maybe 40 people on board). 7/10 (if I'm being kind). I expected better.Qatar Airlines - very cheap (half the price of Oman Air and Ethiad even though I had to travel an extra hour in the wrong direction to get to Dohar first; packed plane), excellent new planes, very good staff, good food. Very good indeed. Muscat to Dohar; Dohar to Bangkok. 9/10 (the food could have been better). I was vert pleasantly surprised.

Now to the expected problem - Thai Airlines... I recently flew from Bkk to Kathmandu, and the options were multiple stops (Air Asia, crappy Indian airlines), Nepal Airlines at 9,000 baht or Thai Air at 12,200 baht. In a rash moment, mainly because you can't book online with Nepal Airlines, I booked with Thai Air.

Thai Air - new 777, great entertainment, comfortable seats, very good staff, easy check-in, the plane took off ontime and landed 40 minutes early, the food was the nicest I can ever remember eating on a plane. I was shocked, don't know what to say... 10/10. Well done Thai, the price wasn't that bad (yes, it was the most expensive of the 5 options I found by 25%), but the entire experience was excellent. Shocked!

Think you will find Thai will be flying smaller planes into Kathmandu soon,seems the authorities there want 737/A320 only flying into the main airport there.Make the most of the 777 while you can on that route.

I think you're right, KT; heard lots about runway problems and cracks in Kathmandu, especially with the larger/heavier planes.

I do like the 777s; flown several recently, they move in the air more than a 737 or 747 imo, but they are pretty nice planes (I like the double seat right at the back by the toilets/stewardesses - excellent for beer drinkers).

We flew on a Thai 747 last flight LHR/BKK first time on one for at least 6 years,forgotten what a nice plane it is to fly in.The 777's are nice but on a 11 hour flight the bit of extra room there seem to be on the 747 makes the flight seem less cramped.
Plus Thai have fitted AVOD now nearly catching all the other international carriers up now.

Agreed, 747s are great in the air, and you hardly know when you're taking off or landing. I also like th 737 800s, small but comfortable in the air. I used to fly a lot of short trips around Europe for business, and row 1 of a 737 was very comfortable indeedy...

Thai airways are the best. We flew direct to Australia with an infant. They were very helpful, made sure we got the good seats, etc. The best is the movie screen on the seat in front. There's a heap of movies and shows to watch, the flight was like just vegging out watching TV in a comfy chair for 9 hours.

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Agreed, 747s are great in the air, and you hardly know when you're taking off or landing. I also like th 737 800s, small but comfortable in the air. I used to fly a lot of short trips around Europe for business, and row 1 of a 737 was very comfortable indeedy...

Over the Bay of Bengal last flight going to Bangkok major thunder and lightning storm lasted 2 hours.I thought to myself,glad i am not flying Jet Airways out of Mumbai that would have been a bumpy flight on their 737/800.Nice little aircraft if you're sitting in business class bit cramped further back though.

I personally have a fair bit of time for them, but they are almost, without fail the most expensive - which does not really stack up against other front line airlines. I can go to UK cheaper by going SIA, which involves much more flying (down to sing, then up to UK). The only reason I go Thai is its shorter time, but its quite annoying that it is mroe expensive!

They're reasonable if you're carrying an infant compared to other airlines. Sometimes you get good domestic deals but yeah they are over the top expensive but for a 9 hour flight I wouldn't want to be crammed up in the Air Aisa seats designed for tiny Asians. I think the cost one way to east Aus. is $700 compared to $500 or less with cheaper carriers involving a stop over and much longer trip.

Used to always use Thai for travel to Denmark from BKK over a four year period on a monthly basis. Also used them on flights to LHR. Always received good service over a period of twenty years or so but during the last five or six years their prices increased significantly against other carriers. Swapped to Air Emerates about five years ago as their prices were very competitive and they actually could take me via Dubai to Birmingham airport in the UK. However their service has slipped over last two years and a gradual increase in price against many other airlines has occured. I have also been 'bumped' off flights out of Dubai to BKK on two occasions through over booking although I was in possession of an on ward boarding pass issued at point of departure in UK. Even as a silver Skywards card holder no apology or any form of compensation (ie food) just told to wait four hours for the next flight,the first time this happened I was travelling business class could not gain access to business class lounge at 7am as it was full! The two biggest problems though are Birmingham Airport check in and Dubai,s treatment of transit passengers (any class) when passing through their "transit" security.
Have now switched to EVA Air for trips to London, ticket price very reasonable, checking in and boarding no problem, food quite acceptable in fact the whole experience is OK.

Never had a bad flight on Thai, still have not flown them in 6 years because of the prices. Last year BKK-LAX was about $940 on China Southern (a surprisingly good airline) Thai's price was $3400. It wasn't a tough choice.

Even as a silver Skywards card holder no apology or any form of compensation (ie food) just told to wait four hours for the next flight,the first time this happened I was travelling business class could not gain access to business class lounge at 7am as it was full!

Awful... I was in Doha airport a couple of days ago at about 1am and it's the busiest I've seen any airport, ever (in transit/departures); couldn't get into any lounge, no seats to be had, and the couldn't get any food due to the massive lines of people... A few hours earlier, I was in Muscat airport and paid 10 rial (about 800 baht) to enter the lounge; it was excellent; nice food, bottles of that nice Mexican beer which is usual pretty expensive, polite staff, not busy, comfy chairs, everything yopu'd expect (the pub in departures is 3 to 4 rials for a drink, so I made money on that alone).

No drink at doha airport - crap...

Quote:

Originally Posted by BobR

Last year BKK-LAX was about $940 on China Southern (a surprisingly good airline) Thai's price was $3400. It wasn't a tough choice.

That sums them up. Crazy prices. I paid 125 rial on Monday (about 10,000 baht) from Muscat to Doha thenonto Bangkok with Qatar who must be thee best or one of the very best airlines. & I got the ticket same day, and the flight was 98% full. If Thai had a similar flight, it'd been 3 times that cost at least...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dillinger

Thai airways is 230 baht cheaper than Air Asia flying to Bangkok from Penang for this weekends coming debauchery

Never had a bad flight on Thai, still have not flown them in 6 years because of the prices. Last year BKK-LAX was about $940 on China Southern (a surprisingly good airline) Thai's price was $3400. It wasn't a tough choice.

Exactly. Nobody prices Thai against budget airlines on long haul, they are benchmarked against other decent carriers, Eva, SIA, many of the european airlines. I have not personally flown any of the middle east carriers, but have seen many positive things about them

Each and every time I look at long haul, thai comes out as expensive. The ONLY edge they have is that I am based in BK, and so their flights are direct, saving a lot of time.

I've flown Thai Air from Chiang Mai to Kathmandu 3 times in the last year and a half (4th upcoming) and I never want to get off the fookin' plane (but Nepal is a bit of fun, I have to admit). For those of you in the north, the layover is like an hour or two (who cares in BKK, right?) and the connection is as smooth as Thai Silk. Remember to ask for a single check-in at Chiang Mai and Kathmandu (on return). If you don't, you might have to check your bags twice each way.

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What annoys me about Thai despite 4 long haul flights in a year i have not accrued any air miles.Air miles can't be accrued on special offer tickets £620.Yet i could pay £100 less with another airline and accrue 100% of miles flown.Think Thai have decided to give 25% of miles flown now.But i have 40,000 miles still with another airline and will switch back to them for a business class upgrade using my air miles before they expire.Think this will be our last flight with Thai for a while again.

BA used to do that, you'd pay more than any other airline for the ticket then they'd say it was class 'H' and a discounted ticket with no airmiles. I stopped flying BA about 15 years ago when they were run by that Aussie nutter...

One thing that thai does have that the other airlines don't is a little rule that everyone flying on the thai governmnent shilling needs to fly thai unless they have serious clout and want to make a fuss, thai does not fly there or thai is more than 20% expensive than the flight you want to book.

These chaps like their junkets and they like them in large groups.... probably a nice little profit center as you slowly price yourself out of the market

^Must say I got got screwed over by thai on the airmiles 10 years ago and have not flow with them since.

Thai Air domestic leave a lot to be desired though. Old, crappy planes, piss poor service and more expensive than the infinitely better AirAsia.

I liked the breaded chicken fingers and fries on our last flight back from HDY had tomato ketchup as well.Proper job.Thought they were birds eye fish fingers at first bloody hell fish fingers and chips sorted.Only a little disappointed when i realised they were chicken.

Were going BA this time 747 out 777 back £610 for 5 month return tickets ,, the cheapest by far ,, the next was one of those India outfits with stop overs + lost luggage + a few extra skid marks in me kecks

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What annoys me about Thai despite 4 long haul flights in a year i have not accrued any air miles.Air miles can't be accrued on special offer tickets £620.Yet i could pay £100 less with another airline and accrue 100% of miles flown.Think Thai have decided to give 25% of miles flown now.But i have 40,000 miles still with another airline and will switch back to them for a business class upgrade using my air miles before they expire.Think this will be our last flight with Thai for a while again.

The offers clearly state whether air miles are accrued on the THAI website. I have always bought the slightly more expensive "air-miles" seats and enjoyed the benefits. Most of the internal flights I book using points from long haul fights paying only the tax....or half price tickets. Four flights in a year will generally get a long haul upgrade (which they always honour). I have also had two business class returns from Munich for points+ 150Euros/ticket after a couple of years of flights. They contacted me and told me the points were about to expire and offered this of 5 x economy tickets. Can't think of many airlines doing that....